RB driver speaks out

Checo Perez admits: “That was the biggest mistake”

Despite finishing second behind teammate Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez repeatedly had to put up with criticism last season that his results were too inconsistent. The Red Bull driver has now explained what he thinks the problems were.

"The biggest mistake in 2023 was that we experimented too much with all the set-up options of a modern GP car. Now we are concentrating on the most important things, which gives us a much more solid foundation," Speedweek.com quotes Perez, who has finished second three times in four races this season. 

"We were going round in circles"
"There was a point in 2023 when we had the impression that nothing was working. We were going round in circles with the set-up," continued the Mexican. He only got back on track towards the end of the season after his team simplified things. 

The Bulls want to stick to this approach this year too. "We try not to get bogged down, because the more you get lost in the details, the more you have to compromise on the set-up. I feel much more comfortable with the car than I did a year ago." Perez is currently only 13 points behind championship leader Verstappen with 64 points, and Checo senses the next opportunity to stand up to the Dutchman next weekend at the Shanghai International Circuit.